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[^OW TO COOK FISH. 



RECIPES 

FOR PREPARING 

Sea mt) Fresh Water Fish for the Table. 



COLLECTED BY THE 



VEREIN DEUTSCHER FISCH HAENDLER 

( Society of German Fish-Dealers, Germany). 





From the German, with Additions, by 

A. C. Imp. Russian Soc. of Acclimation. Author of "The Goldfish 
and its Culture." 



CINCINNATI, OHIO. 

1886. 



^^-^ 



\1^ 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1886, by Hugo 
MuLERTT, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, 
D. C. 



r 



op 



PREFACE 



Fish, as food, are by the great majority of the 
people underestimated. Now this is wrong! Fish 
constitute, according to the highest authorities of 
the present time, not only a wholesome and nour- 
ishing food for man, but fish-diet is even declared 
necessary for the welfare of the human body. Accord- 
ing to recent researches made under the auspices of 
the Smithsonian Institution, a pound of Herring, Sal- 
mon or Whitefish is equal, in nourishing qualities, 
to a pound of the best fresh beef. In the presence 
of this fact, fish can not be looked upon as a luxury, 
and fish-culture has as important a mission to fulfill 
as cattle -raising. 

When, in former ages, the learned monks set 

apart one day of each week for fish-diet, they, no 

doubt, understood the influence of fish-diet on the 

human system. It is, furthermore, a historical fact, 
(ill) 



— IV — 

that most epidemics that raged in Central Europe 
prevailed in those days when fish-culture was in a 
very neglected condition. 

But even if all this were left out of consideration, 
fish is such excellent eating, constitutes such an 
agreeable change in the daily bill of fare, that the 
author hopes this little work will meet with the 
approval of every housewife. 



INTRODUCTION. 



Before we treat of the different manners and 
styles of cooking fish, it is necessary that we become 
somewhat posted about fish in general. Do not be 
afraid however, for I shall not tire you with a lec- 
ture on the natural history of fish ; I shall merely 
state what is 

NECESSARY FOR YOU 

to know in regard to dead fish, as we have nothing, 
at least very little, to do with the living fish in this 
work. 

In Holland, where the people know more about 
the cooking of a fish than in any other country of 
the world — where fish-cooking is considered almost 
a science — fish are killed as soon as caught, or, any- 
way, as soon as practicable thereafter. 

Any person who has had the opportunity 

TO EAT FISH 

in that country, either in a public restaurant or 

(V) 



— VI — 

at a family table, will have noticed the much finer 
flavor and the firmness of its flesh. These qualities 
are, for the greater part, due to the manner in which 
the fish are killed. Let us see on what this is based. 
Fish breathe through gills which are located in the 
head; the water taken in at the mouth is forced 
through them, and thus the fine bloodvessels that 
are contained in these gills are enabled to absorb 
the oxygen contained in the water for the blood of 
the fish. As soon as 

A PISH IS TAKEN 

from its element, the water, these gills are unable to 
supply the blood any longer with the necessary oxy- 
gen, and the consequence is, a horrible death-strug- 
gle of shorter or longer duration, according to the 
variety of fish, which ends in a painful death by 
suffocation. 

But not alone will fish die of suffocation out of 
their element, they will also die of the same cause 
if too large a number are kept in an insufllicient qual- 
ity and quantity of water. 

It would be deemed ridiculous to expect any person 
to eat of the meat of cattle or poultry that came to 
its death by suffocation. And so it is. Meat of 
animals, whether poultry or fish, that have died of 
disease, is unwholesome as food for man. 



— vu 

Right here we may have the explanation for the 
dislike some people manifest against fish-diet, "be- 
cause it lies so heavy in their stomachs;" for this 
dislike may have had its origin in the condition of 
the fish-meat, rather than in the incorrect manner by 
which it was prepared for the table. 

The proper and least cruel way 

TO KILL A FISH 

is — the quickest way. Take a small, pointed, sharp 
knife, insert it immediately behind the fish's head 
and cut the spinal column. The meat of a fish thus 
killed is wholesome, and will keep in a good condition 
for several days, if kept in a well-ventilated, cool 
place ; while that of a fish which was slowly smoth- 
ered to death, either in or out of water, will rapidly 
decay, on account of the absence of a suflicient 
quantity of oxygen in its blood. 

A DEAD FISH 

should never come in contact with water until just 
before it is to be cooked, as water takes the fine 
flavor from it, and also a great part of its nourishing 
qualities. When a fish is killed in the manner de- 
scribed above, scale it, cut it into pieces if necessary, 
and then wipe it dry with a towel. In this condi- 
tion, place it in a cool, well-ventilated place. If 



— Vlll — 

this should be your ice-box, do not lay it directly on 
the ice ; if it be the cellar, lay it right on the stone- 
floor, or, better yet, hang it up. An excellent way 

TO KEEP FISH 

is by freezing them, but here it must be remembered 
that frozen fish lose much of their flavor, and when 
thawed, spoil in an astonishingly short period. Where 
fish are to be kept over for the next day, in the 
summer-time, it is advisable to sprinkle a little salt 
over them. 

This, of course, applies only to localities where 
fish can be obtained alive. In most cities, fish can 
only be bought dead ; and in such cases, the condi- 
tion of the dead fish, without regard to the manner 
in which it was killed, comes into consideration. To 
be able to 

SELECT THE BEST 

of two or more fish of the same variety, is quite 
easy to learn. First of all to be considered, is the 
color of the fish. This should be bright, and the 
markings peculiar to the variety distinct; the gills 
clean and bright red ; the eyes not sunken nor pro- 
truding, but they should be full and clear. If the 
brilliant coloring has left the fish, it is a sign that it 
has been dead for some time. This faded color does 
not indicate, however, that the fish is 



IX 

UNFIT FOR THE KITCHFX ; 

for if fish is frozen, it loses its bright color also. A 
fish should be firm and elastic to the touch ; if you 
can make an impression on it with your finger and 
this impression remains, it is a bad sign — it means 
that decay has set in. As to 

THE SIZE OF FISH 

best for culinary purposes, there is no rule ; this is, 
for the greater part, regulated by individual taste. 
-As a rule, larger fish have firmer meat. The growth 
of fish is not regulated by time ; it depends entirely 
on their food-supply — the variety and the lesser or 
greater voracity of the individual. Fish from large 
bodies of clear water, in which aquatic plants abound, 
have a superior flavor, caused by the liberal supply 
of oxygen through the action of the sunlight, the 
quality of the food and the greater exercise ; while 
on the other hand, fish from a small, muddy, not to 
say filthy pond, have a disagreeable taste. 

THE SEASON OF THE YEAR 

is also of importance to the condition of fish-meat, 
as no fish is good during or right after its spawning- 
time; and, to some extent also, the sex, the males being- 
considered of finer flavor. Regarding the selection of 



THE PROPER VARIETIES, 

we advise our readers to make it a rule to obtain 
their supplies of fish only from responsible dealers, 
where they are sure that no inferior varietv is sold 
under a distinguished name, which is too often j^rac- 
ticed, especially by peddlers. We have often won- 
dered why the people have stood this outrage so long 
without a move to obtain their rights. Maybe it is 
because too little attention has been paid to fish all 
along. How could it be possible otherwise that 
common Suckers, fish of very little value, are fre- 
quently sold under the name of Lake Salmon, fish 
of a high reputation, if the venders were not aware 
of the ignorance of their customers. We are sure 
that there are few, if any, ladies in this country to 
whom a dry goods merchant could sell velveteen for 
silk velvet ; need I to state why ? Now, let us exercise 
the same judgment in fish, and 

THE FRAUDULENT DEALER 

will have a poor show. Besides swindling you by 
selling fish under a false name, such a fishdealer is 
also trespassing against science by injuring the repu- 
tation of a good variety of fish, which to ascertain 
and establish for the welfare of the people, by scien- 
tific researches, may have cost much time and money. 



GENERAL RECIPES. 



TO BOIL FISH. 

Fish should be boiled in a regular fish-kettle. 
Such a kettle is oblong in shape and furnished with 
a double perforated tin-bottom, to which, on each 
end, long wire-handles are attached. Take this per- 
forated bottom from the kettle, lay the fish you want 
to boil on it, add the spice, and then return all gently 
to the pot. The water should just cover the fish. 
Fish should never come to a real boiling ; as soon as 
the water boils up once, move the kettle from the 
strong fire and let it only simmer for a while, accord- 
ing to the size of the fish ; not longer than ten min- 
utes to each pound of fish, however. When done, 
lift the perforated bottom by its wire-handles care- 
fully from the water and gently slide the fish on a 
plate. The fish, having retained its shape this way, 
presents an appetizing appearance when served. Fish 
(11) 



— 12 — 

should always be served as soon as done. Besides 
using the fish-kettle for fish, it may also be used with 
advantage to boil hams. 

TO BOIL SEAFISH. 

All seafish are put on the fire with cold water ; to 
the water add one onion, spice and one bay leaf ; also, 
plenty of salt. Where obtainable, sea-water may be 
used, as this will improve the flavor of the fish. As 
soon as the water boils, move the kettle from the fire 
and set it on the back part of the stove to simmer 
slowly for a quarter of an hour or more, according 
to the size of the fish. If a seafish actually boils, it 
falls to pieces, and also loses its flavor. 

TO BOIL FISH IN BEER. 

Scale the fish, clean and wash them ; also, trim 
their fins. Cut into pieces, if the fish are of large 
size ; also, split them. Now lay them on a colander, 
and then wipe dry with a towel. In a stew-pan, put 
black pepper, onions (whole), sliced lemon, bayleaves, 
cloves, some brown crust of rye-bread and a piece of 
German ''pfefferkuchen," and some butter. Now 
put the fish in, and pour "weiss"-beer or "braun"- 
beer (small-beer, not lager-beer!) over them in suffi- 
cient quantity to cover the fish well. Boil quickly 



— 13 — 

and skim. Now melt some butter, to this add some 
flour, brown it slightly and add to the sauce. When 
the fish are done, take them out of the pot carefully 
with a strainer, and let the sauce boil well for quite 
a while yet ; then add one glass of white wine, some 
sugar, and one teaspoonful of extract of beef. Stir 
well ; then pour over the fish, using a strainer, and 
serve with boiled potatoes. Garnish with sliced lemon. 
The varieties best adapted for this mode of cooking 
are the Lake Whitefish, River Sheepshead (White 
Perch), German Carp, Buffalo, Yellow Perch, and 
the Eel. 

TO BOIL FISH IN FAT. 

The most suitable for this mode of cooking fish 
is beef-suet, but mutton-suet or lard may also be 
used. Butter is not suitable, however. Put the 
suet or lard into a deep stew-pan and heat it to 
boiling ; it must be so hot that when a piece of fish 
is dipped into it, it must turn brown immediately. 
The fish are scaled, cleaned, and along their sides, 
in distances of about two finger-widths, they are 
crimped (i. e., little transverse cuts are made into 
the flesh about one-half an inch deep); or, if the 
fish are of a large size, they are cut into suitable 
pieces. The fish are then wiped with a towel and 
some flour strewn over them. Now beat up one or 



— 14 — 

more raw eggs, dip the fish in it, and then roll in 
crushed bread or crackers. The fish is now ready 
for the pan. The pieces are laid into the hot fat in 
a manner so they do not touch each other. They 
soon rise to the top, where they brown. When com- 
pleted, remove with a strainer ; place on a colander 
to allow the grease to run off, and salt slightly on 
both sides. After the grease has run off, the fish 
is laid on a hot plate uncovered. Serve immediately 
after with hot butter or lemon-juice; garnish with 
parsley, which has been dipped in the hot grease to 
make it crisp. As the fat or lard can be used several 
times again, if care is taken not to burn it, this is not 
a costly way of preparing fish for the table. 

Especially well adapted for this method are the 
Sunfish, Straw Bass, little Catfish, Smelt and Floun- 
ders; in fact, all the small varieties of fish. They 
become so crisp that they may be eaten with fins and 
bones. 

BAKED OR STUFFED FISH. 

Clean and scale a fish of about five pounds, then 
rub into it one tablespoonful of salt ; mash five 
crackers very fine ; add one tablespoonful of chopped 
parsley, one tablespoonful of chopped salt-pork or 
bacon, half a teaspoonful of ground pepper, half a 
tablespoonful of salt, and sufficient water to make 



15 



it into a paste. Put this inside the fish and close 
it with a few stitches. Now cut gashes across the 
fish about one-half an inch deep and over one inch 
in length, and fill these up with strips of fat pork. 
The fish is now put in a pan, sprinkled well with 
pepper, salt and flour, and adding hot water enough 
to cover the bottom of the pan, it is set in a hot 
oven to bake. 

Bake one hour, repeatedly pouring its gravy over 
the fish, and adding hot water as often as necessary 
to keep the bottom of the pan covered. When done, 
place on a large dish and garnish with parsley or cel- 
ery ; serve with Holland sauce. 

For a pan in which fish are to be baked, it is 
also advisable to have a perforated second bottom, 
like the one used in the fish-kettle ; fish are much 
easier to handle with its aid. 

The above method applies especially to large fish 
or varieties that have dry flesh, such as Buffalo, 
Muskalonge, Pike and large Carp. 

FISH PUDDING. 

Take three pounds of fish, scale and skin, clean 
and unbone ; chop fine, with some parsley and one 
onion. Take one-quarter of a pound of butter, 
beat to a foam ; then add, one at a time, six eggs, 
stirring well ; now add the chopped fish, and pour 



— 16 — 

over all this, very little at a time, under continuous 
stirring which should last about one-half an hour, 
about one quart of milk; then add a handful of 
grated bread, a good dose of salt and some grated 
nutmeg. Put in a well-buttered mold and bake one 
hour in the oven. Serve with water-cress, well mixed 
with sweet oil, vinegar, pepper, salt, and boiled beets 
cut into small, square pieces. The following sauce 
may be substituted : Take a handful of morcheln 
(morels, a kind of mushroom), blanche it, squeeze 
well with both hands and chop fine ; roast a si)oonf ul 
of flour in some butter to a light yellow^ ; simmer 
the morcheln with some chopped parsley, to this 
add half a pint of bouillon and season with salt and 
nutmeg. 

FISH PIE. 

Make a short dough and roll it to the thickness of 
a straw ; butter the holes of an egg-pan and line each 
hole singly with this dough ; then fill them with dry 
peas and bake to a light brown. Remove the peas 
when done. Take boiled, baked or fried fish, rem- 
nants will do, pick into small pieces, add a couple of 
spoonfuls of white sauce, to which may be added a 
few capers ; put this into a small stew-pan and heat 
in hot water ; then fill into the hot pastry. 



— 17 — 

FISH RAGOUT. 

After a fish has been well washed and wiped dry 
again, free it of its skin and bones ; then cut it up 
into small, square pieces, salt it, and stew over a 
gentle fire in butter and lemon-juice. When done 
place on a colander, to free it from its liquor. Now 
make a stiff sauce of flour, butter, salt, bouillon and 
one teaspoonful of extract of beef; then add the 
yolks of two raw eggs and some sardelle butter ; mix 
all this carefully with the fish, taking care not to 
break the latter ; fill in large, scalloped shells ; sprin- 
kle with crushed bread and Parmesan cheese, and 
place a small piece of butter on top of each shellful 
of ragout ; set in the oven and bake to a light brown. 

FISH SALAD. 

Take fish that were boiled in salt-water or fried, 
remnants will answer, and carefully clean of skin 
and bones, taking care not to mash the meat. Take 
the yolks of three hard-boiled eggs and rub them 
very fine ; then slowly add the yolks of three raw 
eggs and a little salt. After stirring this for quite a 
while, add, by drops, one-quarter of a pound of 
sweet oil, some sharp vinegar or lemon-juice, and one 
teaspoonful of extract of beef. Then add the fish. 



— 18 — 

together with a couple of teaspoonf uls of capers, and 
mix carefully. 

See also special recipe of Russian salad 

FISH SOUPS. 

See the special recipes. 

FISH SULZE. 

Take either fresh-water or sea fish, clean and cut 
into pieces, salt well and pour hot vinegar over it. 
Boil some white wine, water and a little vinegar with 
slices of lemon, whole pepper, cloves, mace, bay leaves 
and salt ; put the fish into it and simmer until done, 
then take the fish out again and sprinkle it with 
vinegar and lemon-juice. Strain the sauce through 
a cloth or hair sieve ; add a little gelatine ; place 
the fish nicely in layers in a mold and pour the sauce 
over it, to cover, and set in a cool })lace. When 
wanted on the table, reverse the mold on a plate and 
serve with vinegar, oil, mustard and sugar ; with 
salad, or a sharp sauce like the following : Chop two 
dozen juniper berries very fine, take the yolks of 
four hard-boiled eggs and rub them through a sieve, 
one tablespoonful of sugar, three of mustard, six of 
sweet oil, three of white wine vinegar, and half a 
glassful of red wine, and mix well together. The 
juniper berries may be left out. 



19 



CURRY POWDER. 

This desirable spice is used very extensively for 
various dishes, and forms an important part in pre- 
paring certain fishes. In the following, we offer the 
true recipe for mixing it. Take by weight 



Curcuma, .... 


8 parts. 


Coriander, .... 


. 8 




Black Pepper, 


5 




Ginger, 


. 3f 




Cinnamon, . . . • 


1 




Mace, 


. 1 




Cloves, 


1 




Cardamon, .... 


. 2 




Caraway, .... 


h 




Cnyenae Pepper, 


o 




These spices are dried in an oven 


and then pulver- 


ized in a mortar and well mixed. 


Keep 


in an air- 


tight jar. 







SPECIAL RECIPES, 



The foregoing recipes for preparing fish in differ- 
ent styles for the table are general ; those that now 
follow are epicurean specialties, either of localities or 
nations, best suited for certain varieties of fish, etc. 
Those marked with an asterisk (*) are added by the 
author. 

BASS, WITH Caper-Sauce.* 

A Black Bass, Rock Bass (Goggle Eye) or a Yel- 
low Perch is scaled and cleaned, crimped on the sides 
and washed. Put in the kettle, with water to cover. 
In the water with the fish put salt, black pepper 
(whole) and onions ; cook slowly, about six minutes 
to each pound of fish, and take out of the kettle 
when done. Now melt butter and flour, yellow, and 
add finely chopped onions ; then a little of the fish- 
water out of the kettle, some water and fresh butter ; 
then sliced lemon, and, last, some capers. The latter 
must not be allowed to boil, as this would spoil their 

flavor. 

(20) 



— 21 — 

BLACK BASS, with Butter.* 

Select fish that each weigh two pounds and upward, 
scale, clean, crimp and wash. The heads are to be 
left on the fish. Boil in salt-water, with small whole 
onions and whole black pepper, until done. Take 
some butter, heat it but do not brown it, and add, 
while on the fire, some finely chopped parsley. Put 
the fish on a plate, pour this butter-sauce over it, 
garnish with sprigs of parsley, and serve with boiled 
potatoes. 

BASS, FRiED.^-t^ 

The fish are scaled, cleaned and crimped, then 
salted, and left thus for a little while. The fish 
are then rolled in beaten eggs and crushed bread or 
crackers, and fried in hot lard, brown on both sides. 
Yellow Perch and small Catfish may be treated the 
same way. 

STRAW BASS (Rock Bass, Crappie, etc.).* 

These flat fish, including also the Sunfish, may be 
fried after the manner given under the general recipe, 
but they may also be boiled after the general rule ; 
in this case, take, when the fish are nearly done, two 
tablespoonfuls of flour, stir into melted butter, to 
this add a tablespoonful of chopped parsley, put 
into the kettle with the fish, and simmer until the 
fish is done. 



— 22 — 
BUFFALO, Baked * 

After the fish is scaled, split and cut into pieces, 
salt it, and let it lie thus for an hour ; then wipe 
dry and roll in beaten eggs, and then in crushed 
bread. Take half lard and half butter, brown it, 
then lay the fish in it and bake to a light brown on 
both sides. Use the gravy, left from baking, to go 
with the fish. Serve with boiled potatoes or potato 
salad. German Carp may be baked in the same 
manner. See also stuffed fish. 

BULLFROGS.* 

Kill the Frogs with a cut across their heads. Take 
the hind-quarters and part of the back, skin them 
and sprinkle with salt and pepper ; then roll in 
beaten eggs and crushed bread, and fry to a light 
brown. Serve with toasts. This is a delicious dish. 

AMERICAN CARP.* 

These are boiled in water with spice and one onion ; 
when done, melt some good butter, in which stir some 
flour ; then add a little nutmeg, a couple of spoonfuls 
of fish-water, and stir all this to*a sauce ; now add 
the yolk of a raw egg, and season with lemon-juice 
to taste. Mullet may be cooked the same way. 



— 23 — 
GERMAN CARP (Silesian style). 

Let the Carp bleed freely when you have killed it ; 
scale it and remove the intestines. Now take a sharp 
knife and make along its back, from the head to the 
tail, two parallel cuts into the skin, each about one- 
half an inch apart ; salt the fish and let it remain so 
for half an hour. Then cut bacon, a lemon and salt 
sardelles into narrow strips of about one and one-half 
inches in length. Wash the fish and draw, with the 
aid of a carding-needle, these little pieces of bacon, 
lemon and sardelle alternately and crosswise through 
that part of the fish's back that lies between the two 
parallel cuts. Instead of bacon, one may substitute 
sliced pickles. Now put some butter in a pan ; 
when this is melted and yellow, lay the Carp gently 
in it and bake for half an hour ; then add a glassful 
of wine and some good beef -juice to the gravy, and 
bake five minutes longer. Then serve. It may here 
be added that Carp of three pounds and more are 
the best for the table, and Mirror or Leather Carp 
bebt adapted for this mode of preparing it. 

GERMAN CARP, with Sardelles. 

The Carp is scaled, split, cut into pieces and washed 
quickly ; then salt well, and leave it so for an hour. 
Now put some butter in a sauce-pan ; on this a layer 



— 24 — 

of Carp-pieces, which have been well wiped, and on 
this some capers ; then well-soaked and unboned sar- 
delles; again butter, which, in turn, is followed by 
fish, and so on; the topmost layer must be capers, sar- 
delles and butter. Over all this pour a glassful of 
wine and the juice of half a lemon, and let it simmer 
for half an hour. Serve the Carp on a plate with 
its own sauce, and potatoes. 

When wine is mentioned, it refers to any of our 
light native wines. 

GERMAN CARP, Blue (Prussian style). 

The most suitable for this dish is the Scale Carp. 
Care must be taken that the fish loses none of the 
slime that covers its scales ; the scales are left on the 
fish. Kill the fish as directed in the Introduction ; 
remove the intestines, and cut the fish, if necessary, 
into pieces. Now color it blue by pouring boiling 
vinegar over it, and then boil in salt-water, to which 
some spice is added. Serve with a sauce made of 
equal parts of grated horse-radish and apples, mixed 
with vinegar, sugar and salt. Remoulade sauce also 
goes well with this dish. See Sauces. 

GERMAN CARP, in Beer (Saxon style).* 

Take a Scale Carp of three or four pounds in 
weight ; as soon as it is killed, cut it open, remove 



— 25 — 

the intestines, and rinse the inside with a little vin- 
egar ; this you save, as also the blood. The intes- 
tines, excepting the gall, air-bladder and stomach, 
are tied into a little bundle and remain with the fish. 
The fish is neither scaled nor wiped. On the bottom 
of the kettle lay one sliced carrot, one small celeriac 
(turnip-rooted celery) — sliced, about eight medium- 
sized onions — whole, a tablespoonful of salt, some 
black pepper — whole, cloves, six bayleaves, some 
rye-bread crust, allspice, one-half a lemon and one- 
half a pound of butter. Now cut the fish into six 
or eight pieces, including the head, and also lay in 
the kettle — thq, little bundle with the intestines, and 
the roe, put in the center of it ; barely cover the 
fish with "weiss" or *'braun" beer (small-beer), and 
put on the fire. As soon as it begins to boil, look at 
the clock, for it has to boil slowly just three-quarters 
of an hour ; and add another half pound, or less, of 
butter. When nearly done, add the vinegar with 
the blood, and a small piece of German "pfeffer- 
kuchen" dissolved in a little beer, to season the 
sauce. Serve with boiled potatoes as soon as done ; 
the sauce is used as it leaves the kettle, not strained. 

BAKED GERMAN CARP. 

(See Buffalo.) 



— 26 — 

MOCK CAVIAR. 

Two or three Dutch Herrings are cleaned anf7 
soaked in water for a couple of hours, then laid in 
lukewarm milk for five hours ; now skin and unbone 
them, chop very fine, and mix with finely chopped 
onions and the juice of a lemon. Serve with bread ' 
and fresh butter. 

CxVTFISH.* 

See stuffed fish; also Bass, fried, and Eel in jelly. 

CLAM CHOWDER (Long Island style).* 

Take fifty clams, one pound of veal, one-half pound 
of bacon, one pint of milk, some watef, six crackers, 
one teaspoonful each of thyme and sweet marjoram, 
one teaspoonful of chopped parsley, one onion, three 
potatoes, and salt and pepper to taste. Line the 
bottom of the sauce-pan with the bacon cut into 
pieces; pare and cut the potatoes into small pieces, 
chop the onion fine, cut the veal into small pieces, 
chop the clams and mash the crackers. Now put a 
layer of potatoes on the bacon, and then sprinkle 
some onion, marjoram, parsley, salt and pepper over 
this ; then make a layer of veal, then one of chopped 
dams, and keep on until all is in the sauce-pan, 
arranging, however, that the last layer will be clams. 
Now add boiling water to the whole, but not more 



— 27 — 

than to just cover it; cover well, place on a slow 
fire and simmer for half an hour without stirring; 
then add the milk and crushed crackers, stir and 
cook a few minutes longer, and then serve. If pre- 
ferred, one or more tomatoes may be-added. 

CODFISH, Fried. 

(See also Haddock.) 
For five or six persons, take four pounds of fresh 
Codfish, cut in slices of the thickness of a finger, 
pepper and salt well on both sides, then set aside for 
a little while; now roll the fish in flour or beaten 
eggs and crushed bread, and fry slowly in butter, or 
half lard and half butter, to a light brown on both 
sides. Serve with boiled kale, parsnip or cabbage, 
or alone with grated horse-radish and vinegar, or 
brown sauce. See Sauces. 

CODFISH, Boiled. 

Take one and one-half pounds of dried Codfish for 
five persons. The fish, after being well beaten with 
a mallet, is soaked for thirty-six hours in water to 
which a little soda is added ; change this water once 
every three hours. Skin the fish and cut into suit- 
able pieces. Put the stew-pot with water on the fire, 
adding a couple of onions cut into quarters; when 
to a boiling-point, place the fish in it and wait until 



— 28 — 

it boils again, when it should be taken from the fire 
at once and left to draw for five minutes longer. 
Take out of the pot, place on a colander, salt it and 
then put on a plate. Serve with browned butter and 
mustard. 

CODFISH BALLS (Virginia style).* 

One pound of Codfish, one and one -half pounds 
of mashed potatoes, two spoonfuls of good butter 
and the yolks of two fresh eggs. Skin and unbone 
the fish, then weigh and soak over night; in the 
morning change the water, and pour over it enough 
hot water to cover it. Let it stand on the range 
where it will keep warm for about ten minutes ; then 
change the water again, and let it boil ten minutes. 
Take the fish out, pick and chop it very fine ; mash 
the potatoes while hot and mix with the fish ; add 
the butter and yolks of the eggs, into which you 
have previously stirred half a teaspoonful of mixed 
mustard. Make into small, round balls and fry a 
nice brown in butter and lard mixed. 

TO BOIL CRABS OR CRAWFISH. 

(See also Lobster.) 
Set the pot or kettle with water on a hot fire, and 
add some caraway, salt and green parsley. Wash 



— 29 — 

the crabs clean. When the water boils, put in the 
crabs, also a piece of butter, and let it boil one-quar- 
ter of an hour longer ; then serve. 

SOFT-SHELLED CRABS.* 

(Fulton Market style.) 

Lift the shell of the crabs and remove the spongy- 
substance on both sides ; then put your thumb-nail 
under the so-called apron — this is the tail, which is 
pressed close against the lower part of the body — 
and pull it off; also, cut off the ends of the legs. 
Do not wash nor scald them, as this will injure their 
flavor — simply wipe them clean ; then dip in beaten 
eggs and roll in crushed bread which has been well 
seasoned with pepper and salt, and fry in boiling 
lard or oil for about ten minutes. Garnish with 
parsley and lemons cut in quarters. 

EEL, Baked. 

Cut the Eel in pieces, season with salt and pepper, 
and let them lie thus for a couple of hours ; thea 
dry them with a towel, roll in beaten eggs, then in 
crushed bread or crackers, and bake brown on both 
sides. Serve with Remoulade sauce. 



^30 — 

EEL, IN Jelly. 

Middle-sized Eels are killed by a cut across their 
heads, and then salted and freed of all their slime ; 
then cut them into pieces, these put in a pot, and 
boil in water with bayleaves, spice, plenty of salt 
and finely chopped onions until tender ; while boil- 
ing, add about a teacupful of vinegar to the water. 
The pieces of Eel are now taken from the pot and the 
water still allowed to boil for quite a while, until it 
shows signs of thickening. In the meantime, the 
pieces of Eel are arranged nicely in a tin-mold with 
some slices of lemon ; the sauce is then poured 
through a strainer over the pieces into the mold, 
and left to get cold and stiff. Serve with olive oil 
and vinegar. Tench or Catfish may be substituted. 

PICKLED EEL. 

Clean the Eels well, inside and outside, with water ; 
then let them lie for about one hour in salt; now 
wipe them dry with a towel, cut into pieces, and fry 
in a very clean frying-pan in olive oil ; when done, 
lay the pieces on blotting-paper to cool off. To the 
oil that remains in the pan, add a little white pepper, 
mace (whole), some bayleaves, sliced lemon and some 
challottes ; also, a sufficient quantity of vinegar and 
water as will cover all the pieces of Eel when put 



— 81 — 

into a vessel ; let this sauce boil for about fifteen or 
twenty minutes. The pieces of Eel are now placed 
in jars or stone crocks, and the sauce, after it has 
cooled off, is poured over them to cover the same 
about one-half an inch ; the vessels are then closed 
air-tight, and set away in a cool but dry place. Eel 
thus treated keeps for a great length of time. 

EEL, WITH Sage. 

Kill the Eel, wipe with salt, cut into pieces and 
wash well. Cut one onion in slices, add allspice, 
bayleaf, pepper, some vinegar and sage; put into a 
stew-pot, together with the Eel, and cover with water ; 
now add plenty of salt ; boil over a quick fire until 
done. The sauce is made by adding some fresh but- 
ter and flour to the fish-w^ater. Serve with potatoes 
boiled in the skin (unpared) and cucumber salad. 

See also Pike with Eel. 

EEL SOUP (Hamburg style). 
(See Soups.) 

EELPOUT, Blue. 

After the fish is cleaned, salt it freely ; then pour 
boiling vinegar over it and let it stand in this, fre- 
quently turning it over, for one hour; now boil in 
salt-water, with onion and spice. Serve with caper- 



— 32 — 

sauce or the following horse-radish sauce: Three 
spoonfuls of sweet cream, three of vinegar, one of 
sugar and three of grated horse-radish ; mix well, 
then serve. 

EELPOUT, Sour. 

Clean the fish well and cut into pieces; boil as 
above, and skim well. Take bacon, cut it into pieces 
and render it; to these add chopped onions, some 
flour, ground pepper, vinegar, and a little sugar and 
sugar-color; pour all this over the fish in the pot, 
and let it boil up once ; then serve. 

FLOUNDER, Green. 

Clean the fish, cut in pieces and salt it. In a flat 
sauce-pan, simmer chopped onions and parsley roots 
in water, and add to this some butter and half a 
teaspoonf ul of ground pepper ; put the fish in this 
sauce, add a sufiicient quantity of water to cover 
the fish, cover well and simmer until done. Now 
take the fish out, and add to the fish-water one spoon- 
ful of flour, one of butter and one of finely chopped 
parsley; boil this for a minute or two, and serve 
with the fish. 

FLO'UNDERS AND SOLES, Fried or Broiled. 

These are rolled in l^eaten egg^, then in flour and 
salt, and fried in butter. They may also be salted 



— 33 — 

for twenty -four hours, then washed and dried in the 
wind, to be broiled over the fire when wanted. 

LARGE FLOUNDERS OR FLATFISH. 

Clean and scrape the fish, then cut into nice pieces, 
wash and salt them. Put a plate on the bottom of 
the stew-pot, and on this lay the pieces ; then add 
one -half a pint of sharp vinegar, but no water. Let 
the pieces boil in these vinegar fumes over a hot 
fire ; then serve with hot butter, mustard and chopped 
parsley, which is mixed with the vinegar in which, 
the fish was cooked. 

See also Soles and Turbot. 

FISH BALLS. 

(See Codfish.) 

FISH, IN Jelly. 

(See Eel ; also, Fish Sulze.) 

GARFISH. -1^ 

Gars, or Garpikes as some call them, are a great 
dish to many people, and, as the fishermen along the 
Ohio inform us, the demand for this fish for the 
kitchen is on the increase. To dress a Gar, chop off 
its head and tail, cut its belly open, clean and skin 
it. It is said to be good either way, boiled or baked. 



— 34 — 
HADDOCK, Stewed. 

Split the fish, skin and unbone it ; then cut it into 
pieces, and treat like fried Codfish. Pare one quart 
of potatoes, cut into thick slices, and boil together 
Avith chopped parsley roots until almost done. No-w 
arrange the fish and these potatoes in layers in a 
shallow sauce-pan, cover well and simmer until done ; 
then add some finely chopped green parsley ; thicken 
the sauce with one spoonful of flour and one of but- 
ter, let this boil for a minute ; then serve. 

HADDOCK, WITH Sardelle Sauce. 

Prepare the fish in the same manner as directed 
for fried Codfish. In a stew-pot put chopped onions 
and chopped parsley roots ; simmer for a Avhile, then 
add the fish, and fill up with water to barely cover 
the fish ; cover well and simmer until done. To the 
fish-water add one-half a spoonful of flour, one sjDOon- 
ful of butter, two or three finely chopped sardelles, 
one teaspoonf ul of good vinegar, then stir the yolks 
of two fresh eggs in it and let it come to boiling once 
more ; then serve. 

HAKE, WITH Parsley. 

Clean and wash well. Put on the fire with cold 
water, to which add parsley roots and foliage, and 



— 35 — 

one bay leaf. When done, gai-nish with the same 
parsley, and pour some of the fish-water on the plate. 

FRESH HERRINGS. 

These may be fried or boiled, following the general 
recipes. If to be boiled, use allspice instead of black 
pepper, for seasoning. Serve with oil and vinegar. 

HERRING, WITH Brown Sauce. 

Clean, then salt the Herring and wipe dry ; roll in 
flour and grated bread, and fry in butter or lard. 
Serve with the following sauce: Take a medium- 
sized onion, one-quarter of a pound of lean bacon, 
some ground pepper, one tablespoonful of flour and 
two of good white wine vinegar ; choj) the onion, 
cut the bacon in small, square pieces, and simmer 
till the bacon is soft ; now add the flour, then half a 
quart of water (fish-w^ater, if you have any), and 
boil to a short, brownish sauce. 

ROAST HERRINGS, Pickled. 

Fresh Herrings are cleaned and washed, then 
soaked for twelve hours in vinegar, to which onions, 
bay leaves and allspice are added. They are then 
taken out and fried in butter, brown on both sides ; 
this done, they are placed in a tureen and the same 
vinegar poured over them again. 



— 36 — 

SMOKED HERRINGS, Fried. 

The fish are opened and soaked for twelve hours 
in warm milk ; then wipe dry and fry in butter or 
oil until the skin bursts. Serve with oil or butter 
and toasts. 

SMOKED HERRING, h la Dauphin. 
(Mr. CarSme's style.) 
Skin and unbone the fish, then soak half an hour 
in warm milk. Taken out of this, it is wiped dry 
and tipped in a sauce of melted sweet butter, some 
yolks of fresh eggs and finely chopped shives, and 
fried with some browned flour in a skillet. Serve 
with toasted bread, on which some cayenne pepper 
is sprinkled. 

SMOKED HERRING, ^ 1' Italienne. 

The fish is well cleaned and washed in boiling 
water, then dried, and inside and outside dredged 
with flour. Fry in oil, to which some chopped pars- 
ley is added, and serve with maccaroni. 

SMOKED HERRING, as Bishop's Ragout. 

Five or six smoked Herrings are cut in pieces, 
without being washed or soaked, and fried in lard; 
when done, add some finely chopped leek. Serve 
with mashed potatoes and shives, 



— 37 — 

SMOKED HERRING, h, la St. Menehould. 

In a skillet put some butter, one spoonful of flour, 
one cupful of milk, bayleaves, thyme and pepper. 
Skin and open the Herring and boil it in this ; then 
dry it again and let it cool off, dredge with butter 
and flour and fry done. Beat the yolks of fresh 
eggs, add chopped parsley, oil and lemon-juice, and 
serve with the fish. 

SMOKED HERRING, in Butter-Paste. 

Split the Herring, remove the spinal column, then 
wash in milk. When dried, again lay in fish-farce, 
to which some parsley and challottes are [idded. Each 
piece of fish is then covered with dough in such a 
manner that the shape of the fish remains; then 
baste with beaten egg and bake in an oven. 

SMOKED HERRING, in Oil. 
Freed of skin and bones, wash the fish in boiling 
water, dry and cool it off; now stick whole cloves 
into the meat of the fish, and place it in sweet oil. 
Serve with bread and butter. 

SMOKED HERRING, with Onions. 
The fish is cleaned, then soaked for some time in 
water and dried again ; cut some onions in slices and 
fry with the fish. Serve with hot butter, to which 
some mustard is added. 



— 88 — 
SMOKED HERRING (Scottish style). 

Clean the fish, and, if they are dry in meat, pour 
some warm beer or water over them ; when dry again, 
fry in oil or sweet butter. Serve with hot or cold 
butter, mashed potatoes or parsnips. 

See also Smoked Fish. 

LOBSTERS. 

These are washed clean, then boiled in salt-water 
from one-half to three-quarters of an hour, according 
to their size. If wanted cold, let them cool off in 
the water. 

CANNED LOBSTERS and LOBSTER SALAD. 

Recipes for preparing these being, as a rule, on 
the cans, we omit them here. 

FRESH MACKEREL, Boiled. 

Clean and wash, boil whole or cut in pieces in 
water and salt. Serve with hot butter and parsley 
or mustard and butter. 

FRIED MACKEREL. 

Split the fish after it is cleaned and soak in salt- 
water; then wrap some fresh fennel around it and 
fry in oil, to which salt, pepper and dry fennel are 



— 39 — 

added. Serve with a sauce of brown butter, finely- 
chopped herbs, nutmeg, salt, fennel, capers and wine 
vinegar. 

MACKEREL, with Oysters. 

Clean, wash and cut into nice pieces, then boil in 
white wine, to which add some water, salt and herbs. 
Serve with Oyster sauce. 

SPANISH MACKEREL, Broiled.* 

Split the Mackerel down the back, rub over it 
some butter or salad oil, and then sprinkle it with 
salt and pepper. Put it on the gridiron before a 
good fire and brown on both sides ; when done, squeeze 
lemon-juice on it and garnish with sprays of parsley. 

MULLET. 

(See American Carp.) 

TO BOIL MUSSELS. 

Clean the Mussels well in cold, fresh water, and 
remove those that should open while washed ; put in 
boiling water and boil with salt, onions and whole 
pepper until they begin to open. Take out with a 
strainer and serve hot. 



— 40 — 
OYSTERS, Fried (Baltimore style).* 

Drain the Oysters thoroughly in a colander. Cover 
a board well with cracker-dust (pounded crackers), 
and on this place the Oysters in two straight rows 
(handle the Oysters carefully with your fingers, use 
no fork); when they have soaked about one-quarter 
of an hour, place those of the row nearest to you, 
one by one, on top of those on the upper row, in 
such a manner that the cracker-dust of the one comes 
between the two, and the thick parts of both form 
the two ends. This done, sprinkle again with cracker- 
dust and wait another quarter of an hour for it to 
Boak. Now take each couple nicely between your 
hands and press them gently into an oblong shape, 
using plenty of cracker-dust to keep your hands dry, 
and lay them carefully in a skillet with boiling, hot 
lard, and fry brown and crisp on both sides. Serve 
immediately when done, with crackers, pickles, tomato 
catsup, pepper and salt. Oysters may be crackered 
and shaped hours before they are used, but they will 
lose in flavor and appearance if fried ahead. 

OYSTER STEW (Baltimore style).* 

Put the Oysters with their liquor in a sauce-pan 
on the fire; heat, but do not boil; now pour the 
liquor off into another sauce-pan and set on the fire ; 



— 41 — 

as soon as it boils up in this, add some fresh butter, 
pepper and salt to taste, one-half pint of boiled, hot 
milk, and, when to a boiling again, add the Oysters 
and take from the fire at once. If preferred, some 
cracker-dust or flour may be added to the milk to 
thicken the liquor. When ready to serve, put a 
small piece of butter on each plate and pour the 
stew over it. 

YELLOW PERCH.* 
(See Bass ; also, Fish in Beer and Fried Fish.) 

WHITE PERCH. 

(See Sheepshead.) 

PIKE PERCH, in Holland style. 

This fish is known under a great many different 
names. It is also called Wall-eyed Pike, Glass-eye, 
Gray Pike, Ohio Salmon, etc. 

Scale and clean a fine specimen, trim its fins, salt 
it in and outside and let it lie thus for several hours. 
One hour before the fish is to be served put on the 
fire in cold water, to which salt and some milk are 
added. When near boiling remove from the hot fire 
and simmer until done. Take it carefully out, slide 
it on an oblong hot plate ; put its liver, which was 



— 42 — 

boiled with the fish, together with a bunch of parsley 
in its mouth and garnish with the following: Selected 
small potatoes are pared, boiled, then fried, whole ; 
several eggs are boiled hard — when cold chop coarsely, 
the white and the yolks alone ; then chop, also coarse, 
some parsley. Now arrange a ring of the potatoes 
close around the fish, then one of the yellow, next 
one of the white, and near the edge of the plate 
finish with a green border. 

PIKE PERCH, Boiled. 

Take a large fish, scale, clean and crimp it along 
its back ; wash it, then salt it well and let it remain 
so for one hour. Then take the fish and bend it by 
means of a string, which is passed through its eyes 
and fastened to its tail, to a nice circle and wash it 
again. Put into the kettle and boil with plenty of 
salt and onions. For sauce, simmer some flour in 
butter, add some finely chopped chalottes, fish-water, 
mustard to taste, wine vinegar and sliced lemon, also 
a little sugar; let this boil five minutes. Put the 
fish on a plate, pour some of this sauce over the fish 
and serve the rest in a gravy-boat with the fish. 
Thi? sauce may be substituted with brown butter 
and mustard. 



— 43 — 
PIKE, h la KuFFER. 

A Pike, or Muskallunge, of several pounds in 
weight is crimped (gashes cut into it) along its entire 
length, well peppered and salted, wrapped in a large 
sheet of paper, placed on a tin-pan in an oven and 
baked carefully for half an hour. When done take 
the paper ofP, put on a plate and serve. 

PIKE, in Baden style. 

A Pike is cleaned and opened from head to tail, 
then unboned, salted and wiped dry. Place in a 
long earthen bake-pan, dredge with pepper. Put a 
small chopped onion and some butter in a stew-pan, 
simmer yellow and pour this over the entire length 
of the fish ; this done, pour a pint of sour cream 
over it in the same manner, then dredge with a 
quarter of a pound of grated Parmesan cheese and 
some grated bread. Bake one quarter of an hour to 
a nice yellow. Serve with its own gravy. 

PIKE OR PICKEREL FRIED.* 

Take fish that weigh less than three-quarters of a 
pound. Clean and scale, but leave their fins on, 
then crimp slightly and salt. After letting them lie 
thus for a while, wipe dry and cut their heads off ; 
then roll in beaten egg, next in flour mixed with a 



— 44 — 

little grated bread and fry in butter on both sides. 
To the butter that remains in the killet add some hot 
bouillon, vinegar or lemon-juice, and serve with the 
fish, or serve with hot butter and chopped parsley. 

LARDED PIKE. 

A large Pike is cleaned and scaled and larded with 
fat bacon. Put in a pan with plenty of butter and 
bake, basting well and often ; when almost done 
dredge with grated bread and cream. 

See also Stuffed Fish. 

PIKE, AviTH Horse-radish. 

The fish is boiled with onions, salt and pepper; 
w^hen done place on a hot plate and dredge with 
grated horse-radish. Make some butter very hot 
(screeching) and pour over the horse-radish on the 
fish to curl it. 

PIKE, WITH Eel. 

(Stettin style.) 
Select a medium-sized Pike and a large Eel, cut 
them in pieces and wash all the blood off. Lay part 
of the Pike in a tined stew-pan, then the Eel, over 
this scatter chopped onions and then add the rest of 
the Pike ; add salt and water and place on the fire to 
boil. Skim well. Take butter, hot flour, grated 



— 45 — 

nutmeg, a little pepper and finely chopped sardelles^ 
mixed well together and add with some sliced lemon 
to the fish when nearly done. Put on a plate, sprinkle 
some capers over the fish and serve. 

RED SNAPPER, Boiled.* 

Clean, wash and wipe the fish, then rub the juice 
of a lemon into it and sprinkle with pepper and salt. 
Put into a cloth, then into the kettle, cover with hot 
water and salt well. Let it boil gently, skimming 
carefully. If lemons are not at hand add one-half 
pint of vinegar to the water when the fish is put in 
the kettle. Put on a hot plate and garnish with 
parsley and sliced lemons. 

RED SNAPPER, Baked. 

(See Baked Fish.) 

RUSSIAN SALAD.* 

Take a quarter of a pound of cold roast veal, the 
same amount of Salamie sausage, six cold boiled 
potatoes (boiled in their skin), one nice apple, one 
good-sized onion, one boiled red beet and three cu- 
cumber pickles; cut all of this into little strips, as 
much as possible, of a uniform size and put it in a 
large bowl. Now take a clean, well-watered male 
Dutch Herring, unbone it and also cut it, including 



— 46 — 

the milt, in small strips and add to the balance ; this 
done, take a small bowl, drop the yolk of a fresh egg 
in it, add a pinch of salt, and under continuous stir- 
ring add, carefully and alternately, very little at a 
time, mixed French mustard and olive oil, until 
about one tablespoonful of mustard and three of oil 
are thus mixed with the egg; pour this mayonnaise 
over the salad, add one tablespoonful of capers and 
mix well together. Then heap it upon a flat plate 
and decorate artistically with pickles, hard-boiled 
eggs, sardelles, beets, lemon and parsley or celery. 
This salad is best if made the day before it is to be 

used. 

Mayonnaise. 

Instead of mixed French mustard, English mustard 
powder may be used ; in this case, mix the mustard 
with the egg first, then add alternately, as above, the 
vinegar and olive oil, beginning with the vinegar. 
This will make the mayonnaise of a golden color, 
but of a somewhat different flavor. 

SALMON, a la Glaser. 

Cut the fish in slices of finger-thickness, wipe 
each slice dry, but use no water, then pepper and 
salt them. Heat butter to a light yellow in a skillet, 
fry the pieces carefully yellow on one side, now put 
sliced onions in the skillet and fry the other side of 



the fish also yellow. Put the fish on a plate, add 
some hot bouillon to the butter and onions, let it 
come to a boil and pour over the fish, then serve. 

SALMON, Boiled. 

Cut the fish into slices of about one to two inches 
in thickness, and soak these for fifteen minutes in 
vinegar. If the fish is to be served warm, take, to 
each pound of fish, one tablespoonful of salt ; if cold, 
put less salt in the water; in both cases, however, 
add one glassful of white wine, some bazil, bayleaves, 
cloves, whole black pepper and quartered onions. 
Put the fish in the kettle when the water boils. Serve 
— hot, with hot butter and mustard or with caper- 
sauce ; cold, with cold fish sauce. See Sauces. 

CANNED SALMON. 

Recipes for this are, as a rule, on the respective 
cans. 

SARDELLE BUTTER. 

Take, by weight, equal parts of washed and un- 
boned Sardelles and fresh butter, mash very fine and 
rub through a sieve. The Sardelles may be substi- 
tuted with the milt of Dutch Herrings. 



— 48 — 
BOILED SHAD, Cold. 

Put water, to which some vinegar, bay leaves, a 
couple of onions and a small handful of salt are 
added, on the fire. Cut the fish into nice pieces, 
and place in the water as soon as it boils. When 
done, take the fish-kettle from the fire and let the 
fish cool off while in the water. 

BOILED SHAD, Warm. 

Clean the fish, but do not cut it in pieces. Put 
plain salt-water on the fire ; as soon as it boils, put 
the fish in it, but as soon as it boils again, take from 
the fire and simmer until done. Serve with boiled 
potatoes and hot butter. 

SHAD, IN Claret or Beer. 

Scale the fish and wash wel! ; then cut it open and 
remove the intestines, taking care not to injure the 
gall bladder; save the liver and the roe. Now cut 
the fish into nice pieces, but wash it no more, to save 
the blood. In a bowl place two sliced onions, one 
sliced lemon, two pieces of ginger, two bayleaves, 
six or eight cloves ; rub some salt over the fish and 
place it with the liver, and the roe on top of it. 
Over this pour one pint of red wine or small-beer, 
and let it soak two hours in a cool place ; then boil 



— 49 — 

it all gently in a well-glazed pot, witli an addition of 
a little sugar and one tablespoonful of butter. If 
desired, the sauce may be made thicker by adding 
some flour when done. Serve hot or cold with this 
sauce. 

SMELT, Fried. 

Salt the Smelts and then wipe them dry, roll in 
flour or in beaten egg and crushed bread, fry in very 
hot fat to a nice yellow, and serve with kale or alone 
with toast. 

SMELT, Sour. 

Boil a couple of onions, some herbs, spice and 
caraway with water ; then strain it, and add to the 
water some salt and vinegar; put the Smelts in it 
and boil six or eight minutes. For sauce, cut one- 
quarter of a pound of bacon and some onions in 
little, square pieces, and roast these to a light brown ; 
ihen add a spoonful of flour and boil it with some 
vinegar, salt, fish-water and sugar until it thickens ; 
mix with the Smelts and serve. 

SMOKED FISH, with Cerealine.* 

Take two so-called Lake Herrings — for they are, in 
reality, young Whitefish, and only resemble a Her- 
ring in size and color — cut off their heads and tails, 
skin and unbone, then fry with good butter in a 



— 50 — 

skillet. Take two and one-half cupf uls of cerealine 
flakes, to this add two cupf uls of cold water, and set 
it aside a few minutes to soak ; then boil it slowly for 
eight or ten minutes, stirring well, over a moderate 
fire ; add one tablespoonful of good butter and season 
with pepper, salt and nutmeg ; then remove it from 
the fire, but keep it on the stove until yoil are ready 
to serve it with the fish. 

SMOKED FISH, with Rice. 
Boil one-half a pound of rice in one quart of 
bouillon well done ; then heat four tablespoonfuls 
of finely chopped onions with some butter and six 
mashed white pepper-seeds ; this, with an additional 
teaspoonful of fresh butter, mix with the rice. Now 
skin and unbone two or three medium-sized smoked 
fish, cut them into small bites and fry a little while 
in butter ; then butter a plate, on which place half 
of the rice, then the fish, and, in turn, the rest of 
the rice ; form this into a nice pyramid, baste with 
beaten egg, then dredge with grated cheese and bread, 
add another small piece of butter, and bake in an 
oven — taking care that the plate does not get too hot 
from below. 

SHEEPSHEAD.* 

Is boiled like Bass, with capers or Red Snapper ; 
it may also be baked or fried. 



— 51 — 

SALAMANDER, Baked.* 

That the large Salamanders (Menopoma AUeghan- 
iense) that live in our rivers and lakes are eatable 
will surprise most of our readers, but it is a fact, 
nevertheless. We have seen them on the bills of fare 
on the most stylish epicurian banquets of New York 
City. 

After they are killed, by a cut through their head, 
rubbed with salt, washed and wiped dry, then, dis- 
emboweled, they are treated like fish. See recip6 
Baked and Stuffed Fish. 



SAUCES. 



Celery Sauce. -Simmer two celery bulbs (celeriac) 
with butter quite done, add two cupfuls of sweet 
cream, stir it together and then rub it through a 
hair-sieve. Put it on the fire again, season to taste 
and heat almost to boiling, then use. 

Cold Fish Sauce. — Take the yolks of three or 
four hard-boiled eggs, pour some sweet oil over them, 
mash and stir this well ; then add a teaspoonful of 
finely chopped challottes and some vinegar, rub it 
through a sieve and mix with some cold fish-water, 
mustard and chopped parsley. 

Fish Sauce. — Heat two tablespoonfuls of flour 
with one of butter, add one grated onion and mix 
with half a pint of fish-water, then add one tea- 
spoonful of Curry powder and a tablespoonful of 
finely chopped pickle. If this sauce is not sharp 
enough to one's taste, add some lemon-juice. Boil 

all this until it shows signs of thickening. 
(52) 



— 53 — 

Holland Sauce. — Melt a piece of gooa butter in 
a sauce-pan, stir some flour, salt and grated nutmeg 
into it, and add sufficient fish-water to give you 
plenty of sauce. When it begins to thicken remove 
from the fire and stir some lemon-juice, vinegar or a 
glass of white wine to it, also the yolk of a fresh 
egg well beaten and a little cream. 

Mayonaise Sauce. — Into a small bowl drop the 
clear yolks of one or two fresh eggs, add a little salt 
and lemon-juice and stir well together, then add olive 
oil by drops, under continuous stirring, and now and 
then, as it thickens, a few drops of Estragon vinegar. 
If well stirred the sauce will be quite thick, and may 
be thinned with bouillon or aspic ; add white pepper 
and salt to taste. 

Mustard Sauce. — Heat two spoonfuls of flour in 
butter, add bouillon and vinegar and let it come to 
boiling ; remove from the fire and add two spoonfuls 
of French mustard, a little sugar and salt. 

Remoulade Sauce. — Make some golden-colored 
mayonnaise (see Russian Salad) and add sufficient 
French mustard to darken its color, and also some 
grated onions. 



— 54 — 

Tartar Sauce* — Is made of mayonnaise, to 
which finely chopped onions, pickles, parsley and 
capers also chopped, are added. 

White Sauce. — Heat two tablespoonfuls of flour 
in some sweet oil, stir some good bouillon into it and 
let it come to boiling, then take it from the fire and, 
under continuous stirring, during which you add 
some Estragon vinegar, salt, ground white pepper, a 
little sugar and a few drops of lemon-juice, let it 
cool off. 

Wine Sauce. — Stir two tablespoonfuls of flour 
into some water, add two glasses of white wine, one 
of fish-water, salt, a piece of good butter, the yolks 
of four fresh eggs, and beat all this over the fire into 
a cream-like sauce. 



SOUPS. 



CLAM SOUP.* 

Strain the liquor from about fifty clams and put 
it in a sauce-pan. Let it boil ten minutes, skimming 
well while boiling. Add two quarts of hot water, 
one quarter pound of butter and a teaspoonful of 
chopped parsley ; then the clams, chopped fine, a 
pint of cream, and salt and pepper to taste. Boil 
five minutes longer, then serve. 

EEL SOUP (Hamburg style). 

Take the bone of a smoked ham, some bacon of 

beef, set it with plenty of water on the fire and boil 

it for two hours, then add green peas, some parsley 

roots and carrots. Clean the Eel, cut it in pieces 

and boil with vinegar, salt, bayleaves and pepper, 

done. Take a cupful of flour, the yolk of a fresh 

egg and water and make a dough of it. Now heat 

some flour in butter, stir this into the soup, let it 
(55) 



— 56 — 

come to boiling again, then add the dough, cut into 
small bites with a knife, vinegar, some red or white 
wine and a little sugar. Put finely choped eel-grass 
and parsley in a tureen, then the Eel, and over this 
pour the soup and serve with preserved pears. 

SOLES (Filets de Soles). 
Take the four filets of the fish, salt them and 
simmer for half an hour in a sauce-pan, well covered, 
with some good butter and a glassful of white wine ; 
when nearly done, add some flour, bouillon and 
lemon-juice or mushrooms. 

SOLES, in Holland style. 
Scale the white side of the fish and skin the dark 
one, cut ofE the fins and remove the gills and intes- 
tines, wash the fish, then soak in a little salt for 
about an hour and wipe dry ; roll in beaten egg and 
crushed toast, and fry floating in hot lard; when 
done, place on a colander and then on a hot plate, 
garnish with a bunch of parsley dipped in hot lard, 
and serve with fried potatoes (Pom. frids) and quar- 
tered lemons. To cook potatoes in this style, cut the 
raw potatoes into slices, then into strips, dry them 
with a cloth and fry floating in hot lard, stirring 
them well ; when they rise to the surface and turn 
yellow, they are taken out with a strainer, placed on 
a colander, and some fine salt sprinkled over them. 



— 57 — 

SPOONBILL OR PADDLEFISH. 

(Treat like Sturgeon.) 

STURGEON. 

Take a medium-sized Shovel-nosed or a small Lake 
Sturgeon, wash, clean, and place it in the kettle ; 
pour well-seasoned, cold bouillon over it, and boil 
until done. Spread a napkin over a long plate, lay 
the boiled fish on this, and serve with Holland sauce 
and melted butter. Sturgeon may also be baked. 

TENCH, Blue. 

As soon as the fish are killed, clean but do not 
scale them, and pour boiling vinegar over them. In 
a stew-pot put water with salt, one onion, spice and 
a bayleaf, and boil; then add the fish, and boil until 
done. Serve with melted butter and potatoes. 

TENCH, WITH Dill. 
Clean, rub with salt and scale the Tench ; then cut 
them into pieces. After having been well washed, 
they are boiled in salt-water and served with the fol- 
lowing sauce: Set some milk on the fire, and when 
it boils, add a handful of coarsely chopped dill and a 
piece of butter ; stir the yolks of three fresh eggs, a 
teaspoonf ul of salt, a tablespoonful of fiour, in a little 
cold milk and mix this with the boiling milk ; pour 
over the fish, add some grated nutmeg, then serve. 



— 58 — 

TENCH, IN Jelly.* 

(See Eel, in Jelly.) 

STEWED TERRAPIN OR TURTLE.* 

Put them into boiling water and boil rapidly or 
until the nails come off and the black skin loosens, 
which will be in about fifteen minutes; after this, 
put into fresh boiling water and boil until tlie lower 
shell cracks. This will require about half an hoar or 
more. Now remove the lower shell, throw away the 
sand and gall bags, take the intestines out, and put 
the rest back into the same water, to boil for one hour 
more ; now pick all the meat from the upper shell, 
cut the intestines into small pieces and add to the 
meat, pour over all some of the water in which it was 
cooked to make it saucy, and set aside until the next 
day. To finish, take a glassful of wine, one of cream, 
two tablespoonfuls of butter, the yellow of two hard- 
boiled eggs mashed very fine ; salt and pepper to 
taste ; this all you pour over the Terrapin-meat, put 
it on the fire and heat to boiling ; then serve. 

TURBOT AND HALIBUT. 

Set this fish cold on the fire, and boil, or rather sim- 
mer, as directed in the General Recipes. The appear- 
ance of the fish may be improved by soaking it in 
milk before boiling. Serve with the same sauces as 
used for Salmon. See also Flounders. 



— 59 — 
TROUT, Blue. 

The fish is killed and the blood saved in a little 
water ; after cleaning, not scaling, the fish, cut a joint 
out of the spinal column, and then lay the fish for a 
little while in the water containing the blood ; the 
fish is then blued with boiling vinegar, exposing the 
fish not longer than three minutes to the latter, how- 
ever. In the kettle boil water with salt and whole 
pepper ; to this add the fish, let it boil for a second 
or two, and then set aside to simmer for ten minutes. 
Put on a plate, garnish with parsley and quartered 
lemons, and serve with boiled potatoes and fresh 
butter. 

TROUT, Fried. 

After cleaning and scaling the fish, scrape its skin 
until it is rough to the touch ; then open several eggs 
into a dish and lay the trout for half an hour in it 
(the eggs should cover the fish) ; then take it out and 
roll in grated bread, covering the entire fish well, and 
fry slowly with butter or bacon. Trout should be 
killed as soon as out of the water, and should never 
be washed afterward. 

TROUT, WITH Aspic. 

After the Trout has been boiled and cooled ofP 
take it carefully out of the kettle, place it on a plate 



— 60 — 

and pour, repeatedly, half -stiffened meat jelly over 
it until the fish is well covered. Garnish with boiled 
eggs, Lobster-meat, parsley, and serve with vinegar 
and oil. 

WHITEFISH. 

Scale, clean and wash the fish, set on the fire with 
cold water and a little vinegar, spice, salt, onions 
and bayleaves. As soon as it boils move to the side 
of the range and simmer a little while. Serve with 
Holland sauce or browned butter and mustard. This 
most excellent noble lake fish may also be baked or 
fried. 



INDEX, 



PAGE. 

Preface, iii 

Introduction, ........ y 

Bass, Black, with Butter, 21 

" " Fried, 21 

" with Caper Sauce, ; 20 

" Straw, Kock, 21 

Buffalo, Baked, ^ . .22 

Bullfrogs, 22 

Carp, American, Baked, 22 

" German, Silesian style, • 2S 

" " with Sardelles, 23 

" " Blue, Prussian style, .... 24 

" " in Beer, Saxon " .... 24 

" " Baked, 25 

Catfish, 26 

Caviar, Mock, 26 

Clam Chowder, Long Island style, . . . .26 

Codfish, Fried, 27 

." Boiled, . .27 

" Balls, Virginia style, 28 

Currypowder, 21 

Crappie, 21 

Crab or Crawfish, Boiled, 28 

" Soft SheUed, Fulton Market style, ... 29 

Eel, Baked, 29 

'' in Jelly, 30 

" Pickled, SO 

(61) 



— 62 — 

PAGE. 

Eel, with Sage, 31 

" Soup, Hamburg style, 31 

Eelpout, Blue, 31 

" Sour, 32 

Fish-balls, 33 

Fish, Baked or StufiEed, 14 

" Boiled in Beer, 12 

" " " Fat, . 13 

" to Boil, 11 

'' '<■ Seafish, 12 

'' How to Kill a, 7 

" '' Keep a, 8 

'' in Jelly, 33 

** Proper Varieties of, 10 

'' Pie, 16 

'< Pudding, 15 

" Kagout, 17 

<' Salad, 17 

*' The Size of, 9 

" Smoked, 49 

" Soups, 55 

" Suelze, 18 

Flatfish, 33 

Plounder, Green, 32 

Fried and Broiled, 32 

" Large, 33 

'Garfish, 33 

Haddock, Stewed, 34 

*' with Sardelle Sauce, 34 

Halibut, 58 

Hake, with Parsley, 34 

Herring, Fresh, 35 



— 63 — 

Herring, with Brown Sauce, 
" Koast, Pickled, 
" Smoked, Fried, . 

a la Dauphin, . 
" Italienne, 
as Bishop's Ragout 
a la St. Menehould; 
in Butter Paste, 
in Oil, . 
with Onions, 
Scottish style, 



Lobster, .... 

" Canned, 
" Salad, 
Mackerel, Fresh, Boiled, . 
" Fried, . 
" with Oysters, 
" Spanish, Broiled, . 

Mullet, 

Mussel, to boil, 

Oysters, Fried, Baltimore style, 

" Stewed, " 
Perch, Yellow, 

" White, . . . . 
Pike Perch, in Holland style, 

'' " Boiled, . 

Pike, a la Kuffer, . 
" in Baden style, 
" or Pickerel, Fried, 
" Larded, . . . . 
" with Horse-radish, 
" " Eel, Stettin style, . 



PA.GB. 

35 

. 35 

36 
. 36 

36 
. 36 

37 
. 37 

37 
. 37 

38 
. 38 

38 
. 38 

38 
. 38 

39 
. 39 

39 
. 39 

40 
. 40 
. 41 

41 
. 41 

42 
. 43 

43 
. 43 

44 
. 44 

44 



— 64 — 

PAGE. 

Bed Snapper, Boiled, 45 

" " Baked, 45 

Russian Salad, ........ 45 

Salmon, a, la Glaser, ....... 46 

" Boiled, 47 

'' Canned, 47 

" Ohio, 41 

Salamander, Baked, ....... 51 

Sardeile-Butter, 47 

Sauces, ......... 52 

Shad, Boiled, Cold or Warm, 48 

" in Claret or Beer, 48 

Sheepshead, ......... 50 

Smelt, Fried, 49 

" Sour, 49 

Smoked Fish, with Cerealine, ..... 49 
" " Rice (see also Herring), . . .50 

Soles, Filets de, 56 

" Holland style, 56 

Soup, Clam, 55 

" Eel, Hamburg style, 55 

Spoonbill or Paddlefish, 57 

Sturgeon, ......... 57 

Tench, Blue, 57 

" with Dill, 57 

" in Jelly, . 58 

Turbot and Halibut, 58 

Turtle, Stewed, 58 

Trout, Blue, 59 

'' Fried, 59 

'' with Aspic, 59 

Whitefish, 60 



Cerealine Flakes. 



Cincinnati, O., December i8, 1886. 
I have, requested by Mr. Hugo Mulertt, pre- 
pared a meal of fried smoked fish (Lake Herrings) 
and Cerealine Flakes. I mixed two and one-half 
cupfuls of Cerealine Flakes with two cupfuls of 
cold water, set it aside to soak for a few minutes, 
then boiled the same for eight or ten minutes 
under frequent stirring, added one tablespoonful 
of good butter and seasoned with pepper, salt 
and nutmeg, and left it ten minutes longer on 
the stove. The fire should be moderate while 
boiling the Cerealine. I then fried the filet of 
two smoked fish in butter, and served them with 
the CereaHne. I declare it a delicious dish, well 
fitting together ; and so do all who ate of it. 

Herman G. Unser, 
Cook at the St. Nicholas Hotel, 

Corner Fourth and Race Streets. 

A Cook Book, containing two hundred recipes, and a handsomely 
illustrated pamphlet on "Cereal Foods," will be sent to any one on 
receipt of a two-cent stamp by the CEREALINF M'F'G CO., Co- 
lumbus, Ind. 



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